Tougher Standards Set for U.S. Visa Waivers, Citing Militant Threat

Jeh Johnson, the Homeland Security secretary, said more must be known about people who travel to the United States.Credit
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images North America

WASHINGTON — The Department of Homeland Security has toughened air travel requirements on foreign governments in response to what it believes is the growing threat from fighters who have gone to Syria and Iraq to join the Islamic State and other groups, senior American officials said Thursday.

The changes will be applied to the so-called visa waiver program that the United States has with 38 countries. The program allows citizens of those countries to enter the United States on visits of fewer than 90 days without being interviewed for visas at American consulates and embassies.

Countries participating in the program will now be required to allow more American air marshals on flights to the United States. They also must use passports that rely on biometric identifiers, like fingerprints, and have electronic chips that contain a photograph of the holder. Older passports typically do not have these features. A small percentage of travelers who entered the United States last year through the visa waiver program had the older passports.

The countries will have to use computer programs and databases that automate the sharing of travel records and other information with the United States and that track lost and stolen passports.

The Obama administration fears that these citizens might have received training while they were in Iraq or Syria and could then use the new expertise to wage attacks in the United States or on American airliners, the officials said.

Last September, the United Nations Security Council adopted a resolution that called for countries to share more information about travelers in an effort to identify foreign fighters. While American intelligence agencies say they can track these combatants, some administration officials believe that other countries could be doing more.

“As I have said a number of times now, the current global threat environment requires that we know more about those who travel to the United States,” Jeh Johnson, the secretary for homeland security, said in a written statement. “This includes those from countries for which we do not require a visa.”

The Department of Homeland Security will also conduct a review of all the countries participating in the waiver program to determine whether they are following its requirements. Those findings will probably lead to additional scrutiny at border crossings for travelers from countries that the department has determined have weaknesses in their screening processes.

The visa waiver program was created in 1988 to expedite travel between the United States and its allies. Participating countries are required to meet certain standards for aviation and border security. They are also expected to have strong laws and safeguards to prevent counterfeiting of passports.

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Instead of applying for a visa, travelers using the waiver program have to fill out a special form and receive approval from Customs and Border Protection before boarding a flight to the United States.

Last fall, the department added new questions to its visa waiver applications. Six months ago, it began a review of the program to determine whether it could be exploited by foreign fighters.

“D.H.S. is also considering options available to encourage compliance, beyond utilizing the most stringent option of removing a country from the program, measures that are designed to achieve greater global security,” according to a department document.

The department will not make any changes to the United States’ programs with other countries “without first consulting with the affected country,” the document said.

The United States believes that at least 18,000 foreign combatants, including more than 3,000 Europeans, have made their way to Syria since the conflict began there in 2011. Roughly 500 of them have returned to European countries.

The “security enhancements” announced on Thursday, Mr. Johnson said, “are part of this department’s continuing assessments of our homeland security in the face of evolving threats and challenges, and our determination to stay one step ahead of those threats and challenges.” He added that the changes would not “hinder lawful trade and travel with our partners in the visa waiver program.”

A version of this article appears in print on August 7, 2015, on Page A18 of the New York edition with the headline: Tougher Standards Set for U.S. Visa Waivers. Order Reprints|Today's Paper|Subscribe